Oil prices rise

The West Texas Intermediate for November delivery on Thursday added $0.26 to settle at $50.44 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, while Brent crude for December delivery increased $0.22 to close at $52.03 a barrel on the London ICE Futures Exchange, Xinhua news agency reported.

The Energy Information Agency (EIA) said in its weekly report on Thursday that US crude stockpiles added 4.9 million barrels in the week ended October 7, beating market consensus.

However, the EIA reported a drop of 3.7 million barrels for distillates, which include diesel and heating oil, and 1.9 million barrels decline for gasoline.

The surprise build in crude stockpiles was offset by the drop in fuel inventories, which supported the oil prices on Thursday.

A weaker US dollar also made the greenback-dominated oil more attractive for holders of other currencies. The dollar index, which measures the greenback against six major peers, was down 0.43 per cent at 97.544 in late trading on Thursday.